CF baseball opens season today at South Florida C.C.

College of Central Florida's second baseman Danny Timmons completes a throw to first base during hit and run drills during practice Tuesday as the team prepared for their season opener against South Florida State College Friday afternoon in Avon Park. The Patriots first home game will be Saturday February 2 against Brevard Community College.

Facts

CF Baseball Season Opener

The College of Central Florida is no different entering the 2013 season, which starts today at South Florida Community College. Longtime head coach Marty Smith calls this year's crop of arms the deepest stable he has had.

Lefty starters Kevin Games and Darren Fischer sit atop a rotation that has seven quality pitchers vying for four spots come Mid-Florida Conference play in early March.

"Pitching is the main ingredient to any good season," said Smith, who is about to begin his 19th season as Patriots coach and has 542 wins. "We have a lot of pitching depth coming back from last season. We have guys on the mound who can keep us in games."

The Patriots' returning pitchers combined for 21 wins last year on a team that finished 31-20. Entering the 2012 season, CF had no wins coming back and little experience to build on. Along with Games (5-3, 2.85 ERA in 2012) and Fischer (7-2, 3.06), Vanguard alum Colby Wisdom (6-0, 3.31) and Joe Marotta (3-3, 3.14) will be in the mix.

Eric Bauer, Travis Richardson and Clint Cronin will also have a chance to start early on, Smith said. Cronin, a sophomore, missed last season but pitched for CF in 2011.

"I've never had the luxury to have more than four quality arms who can be starters," Smith said. "So it's nice. There are so many games early, so everybody will have a chance to show what they've got."

Offense

Games and Fischer both figure to make an impact offensively too. Games hit .339 last season with 14 doubles and 26 RBIs in 183 at-bats, while Fischer hit .271 in 48 at-bats. However, Smith said Fischer, a sophomore from Bridgeton, N.J., has been his best hitter through the fall and has carried it over to preseason workouts.

"I started out only pitching last year," said Fischer, who will be a designated hitter and an outfielder when he's not on the mound. "I got a chance later on to swing the bat, and I think I opened up some eyes. I kept working hard at it and am looking forward to having a good season at the plate and on the mound."

Of the six Patriots who hit better than .300 last season, Games is the only one returning.

"I have confidence in everybody on this team in any situation they're put in," said Games, a New Port Richey Mitchell High School grad. "Everyone is really excited to get going. This year, we're all in it for the right reasons, on and off the field."

Another key newcomer is third baseman Collin Woody, a freshman from Wharton High School in Tampa. Woody hit .341 with 21 RBIs for Wharton as a senior and was named the Tampa Bay Times' Hillsborough County player of the year. He also excelled as a pitcher, going 9-2 with a 1.86 ERA.

Sophomore transfer Brendan Collins figures to play a roll offensively too at the top of the order. The outfielder was the Sunshine State Athletic Conference freshman of the year last season for St. Leo University. Collins hit .373 for the Division II Lions.

Three catchers will rotate through the first few weeks. Freshmen Robby Jolly (Forest High) and Isaac Geisler will play along with sophomore Spencer Bowles, who also transferred from St. Leo.

Another three-way platoon will occur at first base. Trinity Catholic graduate Sean Plunkett played about 30 games at first in 2012. Redshirt freshman Ryan Smith and Josh Ellzey — both Forest graduates — will also get a look.

Getting to Lakeland

Santa Fe College, which has won the Mid-Florida Conference the last four seasons, will again be favored to return to the state tournament in Lakeland. Seminole State College and Daytona State College should also be competitive with good pitching, Marty Smith said.

CF went to the tournament last season as the conference runner-up and lost a pair of one-run games.

"When we get down to those close games (in the postseason), we have to execute in all phases," Games said. "And us sophomores who played (in Lakeland) last year know what it takes now. We want to get back there for sure."

Marty Smith knows that being the best team heading into the postseason doesn't usually mean much.

"Realistically, we just want to get in the tournament," he said. "Hopefully we'll get hot and ride it. In '97 we weren't the best team, but we got hot and won it. A year later, we were the best team and went 5-0. So we'll see."

But when push comes to shove this year, pitching should tell the story.

"This is my third year of college baseball, and this is the best group I've faced," said Collins, who is a redshirt sophomore. "As long as they stay healthy, we should have a good staff from top to bottom all year round."

CF's home opener will be Feb. 1 against Indian River State College at 3 p.m.

<p>Like most baseball teams with aspirations of a deep postseason run, it all starts with pitching.</p><p>The College of Central Florida is no different entering the 2013 season, which starts today at South Florida Community College. Longtime head coach Marty Smith calls this year's crop of arms the deepest stable he has had.</p><p>Lefty starters Kevin Games and Darren Fischer sit atop a rotation that has seven quality pitchers vying for four spots come Mid-Florida Conference play in early March.</p><p>"Pitching is the main ingredient to any good season," said Smith, who is about to begin his 19th season as Patriots coach and has 542 wins. "We have a lot of pitching depth coming back from last season. We have guys on the mound who can keep us in games."</p><p>The Patriots' returning pitchers combined for 21 wins last year on a team that finished 31-20. Entering the 2012 season, CF had no wins coming back and little experience to build on. Along with Games (5-3, 2.85 ERA in 2012) and Fischer (7-2, 3.06), Vanguard alum Colby Wisdom (6-0, 3.31) and Joe Marotta (3-3, 3.14) will be in the mix.</p><p>Eric Bauer, Travis Richardson and Clint Cronin will also have a chance to start early on, Smith said. Cronin, a sophomore, missed last season but pitched for CF in 2011.</p><p>"I've never had the luxury to have more than four quality arms who can be starters," Smith said. "So it's nice. There are so many games early, so everybody will have a chance to show what they've got."</p><p><b>Offense</b></p><p>Games and Fischer both figure to make an impact offensively too. Games hit .339 last season with 14 doubles and 26 RBIs in 183 at-bats, while Fischer hit .271 in 48 at-bats. However, Smith said Fischer, a sophomore from Bridgeton, N.J., has been his best hitter through the fall and has carried it over to preseason workouts.</p><p>"I started out only pitching last year," said Fischer, who will be a designated hitter and an outfielder when he's not on the mound. "I got a chance later on to swing the bat, and I think I opened up some eyes. I kept working hard at it and am looking forward to having a good season at the plate and on the mound."</p><p>Of the six Patriots who hit better than .300 last season, Games is the only one returning.</p><p>"I have confidence in everybody on this team in any situation they're put in," said Games, a New Port Richey Mitchell High School grad. "Everyone is really excited to get going. This year, we're all in it for the right reasons, on and off the field."</p><p>Another key newcomer is third baseman Collin Woody, a freshman from Wharton High School in Tampa. Woody hit .341 with 21 RBIs for Wharton as a senior and was named the Tampa Bay Times' Hillsborough County player of the year. He also excelled as a pitcher, going 9-2 with a 1.86 ERA.</p><p>Sophomore transfer Brendan Collins figures to play a roll offensively too at the top of the order. The outfielder was the Sunshine State Athletic Conference freshman of the year last season for St. Leo University. Collins hit .373 for the Division II Lions.</p><p>Three catchers will rotate through the first few weeks. Freshmen Robby Jolly (Forest High) and Isaac Geisler will play along with sophomore Spencer Bowles, who also transferred from St. Leo.</p><p>Another three-way platoon will occur at first base. Trinity Catholic graduate Sean Plunkett played about 30 games at first in 2012. Redshirt freshman Ryan Smith and Josh Ellzey — both Forest graduates — will also get a look.</p><p><b>Getting to Lakeland</b></p><p>Santa Fe College, which has won the Mid-Florida Conference the last four seasons, will again be favored to return to the state tournament in Lakeland. Seminole State College and Daytona State College should also be competitive with good pitching, Marty Smith said.</p><p>CF went to the tournament last season as the conference runner-up and lost a pair of one-run games.</p><p>"When we get down to those close games (in the postseason), we have to execute in all phases," Games said. "And us sophomores who played (in Lakeland) last year know what it takes now. We want to get back there for sure."</p><p>Marty Smith knows that being the best team heading into the postseason doesn't usually mean much.</p><p>"Realistically, we just want to get in the tournament," he said. "Hopefully we'll get hot and ride it. In '97 we weren't the best team, but we got hot and won it. A year later, we were the best team and went 5-0. So we'll see."</p><p>But when push comes to shove this year, pitching should tell the story.</p><p>"This is my third year of college baseball, and this is the best group I've faced," said Collins, who is a redshirt sophomore. "As long as they stay healthy, we should have a good staff from top to bottom all year round."</p><p>CF's home opener will be Feb. 1 against Indian River State College at 3 p.m.</p><p><b>2013 Patriots</b></p><p><b>No. Name Pos. Year Hometown/High school</b></p><p>1 Colby Wisdom LHP Soph. Ocala/Vanguard</p><p>2 Kenny McDonald RHP Fresh. Ocala/Vanguard</p><p>3 Tino Gaudino C Soph. Jupiter/Dwyer</p><p>4 Clint Cronin RHP Soph. Jacksonville/Ponte Vedra</p><p>5 Jason Lombardozzi SS/2B Fresh. Chambersburg, Pa./Chambersburg Area</p><p>6 Robby Jolley C Fresh. Ocala/Forest</p><p>7 Brendan Collins OF Soph. Fort Myers/Fort Myers</p><p>8 Kevin Games LHP/OF Soph. New Port Richey/Mitchell</p><p>9 Jake Ganglehoff RHP Fresh. Ocala/Forest</p><p>10 Joan Rondon SS/2B Fresh. Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic/Cenafec</p><p>11 Sean Glabicky 3B Fresh. Peabody, Mass./Malden Catholic</p><p>12 Weston Pope RHP Fresh. Crystal River/Crystal River</p><p>13 Enderson Velasquez SS/2B Freshman Caracas, Venezuela/Liceo Avila</p><p>14 Sean Plunkett OF Soph. Ocala/Trinity Catholic</p><p>15 Isaac Geisler C Fresh. Fredericksburg, Va./Mountain View</p><p>16 Eric Bauer LHP Soph. Longwood/Lake Brantley</p><p>17 Travis Richardson LHP Fresh. Kissimmee/Osceloa</p><p>19 Josh Ellzey OF/1B Fresh. Ocala/Forest</p><p>20 Collin Woody 3B/RHP Fresh. Tampa/Wharton</p><p>21 David Lugo OF Fresh. Homestead/South Dade</p><p>22 Darren Fischer LHP/OF Soph. Bridgeton, N.J./Cumberland Regional</p><p>23 Ryan Smith INF Fresh. Ocala/Forest</p><p>24 Mario Urdaneta OF Soph. Ocala/Forest</p><p>25 Spencer Bowles C Soph. Tampa/Wiregrass Ranch</p><p>26 Ben Legath RHP/DH Fresh. Johnstown, Pa./Westmont Hilltop</p><p>28 Danny Timmons RHP/2B Soph. Ocala/Forest</p><p>29 Matt Christensen RHP Fresh. Ocala/Vanguard</p><p>30 John Thomas LHP Soph. Ocala/Forest</p><p>33 Joe Marotta RHP Soph. Port St. Lucie/Treasure Coast</p><p><b>Coaching staff</b></p><p>Head coach: Marty Smith (19th season, 542-403-4)</p><p>Pitching coach: Arthur Stenberg</p><p>Hitting coach: Zach Bove</p><p>Volunteer assistant: Butch Elkins</p>